Water Street will have more than 400 apartments by the time this project is finished, and the district’s growth is expected to continue since developers want to construct another commercial building and have a purchase option for land across the river by Deeds Point.

“As long as the market responds well, we’ll keep looking at ways to expand and enhance the Water Street District,” said Jason Woodard, principal with Woodard Development.

Water Street, located primarily north of Fifth Third Field, already has 215 apartments, including 30 town homes. The district also has a four-story office building at Monument Avenue and Patterson Boulevard.

The Water Street District has a residential vacancy rate below 2 percent and the office building is completely filled.

The district has helped increase the number of market-rate housing units downtown to 1,345, according to the Downtown Dayton Partnership.

“The housing in and around downtown is hot, maybe the hottest it’s ever been,” said Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley this week during her State of the City address. “With a total occupancy rate of 97 percent, developers like Jason Woodard are working overtime to meet the demand.”

Developers want to capitalize on downtown’s red-hot downtown housing market with this expansion and the upcoming opening of the Delco Lofts next to the ballpark.

Woodard Development and Crawford Hoying have submitted plans to construct a trio of three-story buildings, east of its current residential facilities, close to the Webster Street bridge that is presently being replaced.

The new buildings will look similar to the current residential structures, with two directly overlooking the bike path and river.

The third will be almost perpendicular to the river, near the corner of Webster and Water streets, though one end will face the waterway.

The housing units will feature similar finishes to the 215 current apartments in the district, but the floor plans will vary, Woodard said. Six of the units will offer three bedrooms.

Developers want to start construction at the end of March, beginning of April. However, they will need to appear before the Dayton Plan Board for a major site design review.

The first units will probably open later in the fall, and others will come online in stages. The apartments are expected to lease for between $1,100 and $1,700 per month.

The Water Street District also will welcome 133 new apartments when the Delco Lofts building opens, expected for July 1.

Woodard said pre-leasing for the apartments has been strong.

And Water Street isn’t finished yet.

Woodard and Crawford Hoying are nearly complete with a development agreement with the city for a Marriott Fairfield Inn and Suites at Monument and Patterson. Woodard said construction hopefully will begin later this spring.

The developers also want to construct an office building at Monument Avenue and Webster Street, but they do not have definitive plans lined up for this year. Woodard said his group has an option for the land just east of Requarth Co.

Additionally, developers also have a purchase agreement for land across the river from Water Street at Deeds Point.

“Our initial vision was filling a hole in the market, and the market has received it well and we’re essentially full,” Woodard said.

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